First Badger Experience

Our little sports fanatic got to experience his first Badger event, and his favorite sport, hockey! They had an afternoon game last Sunday that work well into Brode's schedule so we decided last minute to go, packed up the car, and headed down! Brode loves hockey as everyone knows, and he has been to games before and loved them so everyone was excited to see how much he would love this Badger hockey game.

He didn't love it. He was scared. It was loud and there were spot lights. Brode got nervous and watched the majority of the game like this.

Secretly we all know he liked it. He would come out of his shell and yell "HOCKEY" every few minutes and he did get a few smiles in as well.

Of course, the minute we got in the car he was overly excited about the entire trip and began yelling and cheering for the Badgers (just 3 periods too late).Even if Brode was nervous it was fun to take him.

"Here Fishy, Fishy!"

Brode got fish!

He has actually had the tank set up in his room for quite a while but we finally got around to actually filling it up and getting some fish in it!

Last night we went to the store and picked our first 4 and will gradually add more. It is a large tank and will hold many fish! He was excited to look in all the different tanks at the store and watch his fish swim around in his own tank in his room!

They were still swimming this morning after we slowly got them accustomed to the new tank and water. As you can see the food is sitting high on the top and we take care of the feeding (can you imagine a 2 year old with an open jar of fish flakes. Huge mess. I'll handle that thank you!).

The only thing we have left to do besides keep them alive (good thing there is a 30 day gurantee), is name them! Daddy's suggestions include: Kane, Gretzky, Crosby, and Badger. Grandpa's suggestions include: John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

I'll leave the naming to Brode as these other boys have a clear bias.

Favorite Children's Book

Hello All! I wanted to do a different post today, we don't really have much to update on.

Brode has a bookshelf full of books, a few in the car, a few in the diaper bag, and a stack in the living room. There are books everwhere. Some were mine when I was little, some were Matt's, and a lot are Brode's that he has received. It is fun digging back through my books, reading my favorites, and seeing which ones were Matt's favorites then combining them all for Brode. They're all worn broken in, but I can still remember which ones we read the most. Brode's books are fun and he is developing his favorites. He enjoys books with things that he is familiar with like Mickey, Franklin, animals, trucks, colors, etc so we try and get a variety. He also really enjoys books that he can be involved in. We're currently reading a group of books about Trucks, Tractors, Diggers, and Emergency Vehicles that hides hammers, screwdrivers, or pliers on each page and he just loves finding them! We spend a lot of time picking out new books from the library too!

One thing that is new and different is that I'm not on the listening side. Most of the books I enjoyed was because of the way they were read. Some had many details that I loved to listen to and picture. I now have my favorites that I love reading to Brode. Matt and I have agreed that we both love 'You Are My I Love You'. It is a perfect book to read before bed as we calm down and get ready for good-night kisses. I suggest it to any parent or as a gift to any new parent!

You Are My I Love You

Maryann K. Cusimano & Satomi Ichikawa

I am you parent; you are my child

I am your quiet place; you are my wild.

I am your calm face; you are my giggle.

I am your wait; you are my wiggle.

I am your carriage ride; you are my king.

I am your push; you are my swing.

I am your audience; you are my clown,

I am your London Bridge; you are my falling down.

I am your carrot sticks; you are my licorice.

I am your dandelion; you are my first wish.

I am your water wings; you are my deep.

I am your open arms; you are my running leap.

I am your way home; you are my new path.

I am your dry towel; you are my wet bath.

I am your dinner; you are my chocolate cake.

I am your bedtime; you are my wide awake.

I am your finish line; you are my race.

I am your praying hands; you are my saying grace.

I am your favorite book; you are my new lines.

I am your night-light; you are my starshine.

I am your lullaby; you are my peekabo.

I am your good-night kiss; you are my I Love You.

Do you have any favorite books from your childhood, or books that you like reading to your kids? Please share, we can always use new titles!

Tree Planting

Tuesday afternoon Brode and Grandpa planted a tree!

My dad received the tree from a work event. It is still a bit (ok a lot) unsturdy so they planted it in a pot for the winter until it gets big enough go in the ground (and tall enough that the tractor won't run it over!).

Brode loved putting the dirt in the pot. He loved it so much that he wasn't as interested in putting the tree in the dirt or watering it, but what more can you expect from a little boy.

We'll be sure to teach Brode to water his tree and hopefully one day it will grow as big as him!

Trigger Thumb

Today, Brode had his left trigger thumb released! We noticed his thumb was not able to extend, just over 6 months ago. Brode was sent to a hand specialist who then decided to watch it for 6 months to see if it is a something that would fix itself (less severe cases can clear up over time). Last month we found ourself back in the office and his thumb was still stuck. He then decided that it would be to do the operation at any time. We had three choices of surgery dates and between school, work, and holidays we chose to do it right away in October.

BEFORE

This surgery, unlike his others, was done at a hospital here instead of Childrens. We had to arrive nice and early at 5:45! After an hour and a half of prep they brought him back and before we knew it the doctor came in saying he was done! Brode had a bit of a hard time waking up, but eventually adjusted. We were able to go home by 9:00! The wrapping on his arm is the hardest part but he is slowly adjusting.

AFTER

We're hoping after a nice nap Brode will be back to normal!

It was very strange for us going through this surgery because we didn't need an extravagant week long preparation and we were in and out in no time! I tried to remind myself that there is still anesthesia, it's still a big deal and we must be careful and concerned, but I am much happier being home 3 hours later, not 3 days!

We will go back in 2 weeks and get the wrapping taken off, do a few exercises, and hopefully his thumb will be all back to normal! Good job Brode!

Fall Leaves

The last few days have been beautiful! Brode and I got a chance to get outside, rake some leaves, and jump in them! Brode ran through them, threw them in the air, jumped in them, and threw fits when they got in his pants and shoes. He loved to crinkle them! I decided to get his pumpkin, add it to the pile, and take some fall pictures:

This was his "cheese" face picture.

Libby came over to check it out, so of course I dragged her in to join in the pictures. Take a look for yourself how it went:

I did get ONE that they were both looking at the camera, rather fearfully, but they're looking!Brode was home sick with a bit of a fever today, but we're hoping we can spend the rest of the weekend outside and having fun!

Present Highlights

We celebrated Brode's birthday on the 26th, but a lot of people have been asking what he got for his birthday so I thought I'd go back and give some highlights!

First, he got some great clothes! He was in need of fall/winter clothes so he got some sweatshirts, long sleeve shirts, jeans and sweatpants. He is ready to look good and stay warm.

Brode also got many books and puzzles! He got a prayer book for kids, a halloween book and a Mickey book. He also got 5 puzzles with letters, animals, and trucks! Matt got him a 400 page Curious George coloring book that will keep him busy. Brode also got a TAG junior reader from Grandma and Grandpa. It's a Leap Frog reading assistant made for toddlers to help them learn to read. Brode also got books to go along with his reader, including Curious George colors, Shapes, Music, Cars, and a few others. The TAG Junior is placed on the books words and pictures and it reads the words and plays music!


He got some fun things as well including a race car track, a Little People castle, and some hot wheel cars! Brode got a play kitchen and food, and he has loved cooking on it since it was opened!

Matt also got Brode a "Light The Way Thomas". The lattern flashes a red light and Thomas drives all around following the light - much easier than a remote control for his little hands!
We're so happy with Brode's presents he got a lot of things to learn from, to challenge him, essentials that he needed, and a few things to have some fun. He is only extremely lucky little boy! Hie family and friends sure do love and spoil him!

Football Gear

We finally had a weekend at home with nothing going on! We watched football, played, and Brode even made pancakes for breakfast!

Brode was in full team spirit this weekend as we watched the football games.

The pictures speak for themselves on our little sports fanatic. He did enjoy wearing all of the jerseys, but he also had his Brewers hat on and played hockey on the Wii all at the same time - he just can't commit to one sport.

Happy 2nd Birthday Brode

Brode turned 2 on Sunday!

We celebrated with friends and family at our house. Brode had a great time running around, visiting, opening presents, and eating cake!

Showing everyone how old he is now - he needs more practice.

So what is Brode up to as a 2 year old?

Brode is 34 inches tall and weighs 27 pounds.

He is wearing 24 month clothes, still some 18 month pants, and size 6 shoes.

He has an extremely extensive vocabulary and only needs to hear a word once before storing it in his memory.

He knows the sounds of a large amount of animals, can count to 14, and can say the alphabet.



He LOVES anything sports - hockey, baseball, soccer, basketball, golf, everything.

He has now moved to the 2 year old room at day care with his best friend and they love playing keyboard, pizza, and kitchen in between the playground and art project times.

He loves to run, jump, and do somersaults all over the house.

He is still in his crib and has yet to try climbing out so there he will stay.

He uses the potty at least three times a day when asked to go - but no regular routine.

His favorite foods are... everything! Brode is not picky and will eat everything! He has rejected tomatoes before, but everything else he has loved!

He eats with silverware and is learning to drink out of an open top cup.

He is great at his manners, saying please and thank you, helping clean up, and throwing things away!


Brode is an extremely fun, loveable, wild 2 year old boy and I couldn't be more happy! He entertains us and amazes us with his knowledge every day!

Happy 2nd Brithday Brode!

Quarry Quest

Today in Neenah was Quarry Quest at Michels quarry! My friend Claire and I took Brode down for a few hours this morning. The Quarry is huge and there are many activities, but Brode wasn't the biggest fan of the whole experience. He LOVES diggers, we read books about them, he notices them all along the road, but he brushed these diggers off like it was nothing. After we walked around he started to lighten up and played in the "Tot Spot" sand pit. Eventually we made it to the little diggers, watched some of the cranes and big diggers, climbed the large sand hill and rode in one of the trucks. Brode was exhausted by noon and started melting down. I knew if we stayed longer he would get a bit more comfortable and do some more activities, but we couldn't skip nap today and he just wasn't interested in many of the big kid activities. Maybe next year at 3 will be a bit better.Can you see that he is the only one that didn't want to wear his orange vest. Typical Brode.

On a different note, I couldn't help but laugh at Brode's sport apparel yesterday. He wore his Packer jersey and his Brewer hat to day care while he held onto his Badger hockey stick in the car. Last night I then did all his laundry and pulled out his hockey jersey, his brewer shirt, his cowboy jersey, and his packer jersey. He clearly isn't faithful to one team, but he sure loves his sports!